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An Engineering Perspective on the Importance of Obtaining Operational Stability in Graduate School

delete2026-06-09
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OA
AI
A
Ashton F. Oliver
F
Frank L. Douglas
R
Ravirajsinh N. Jadeja
M
Merry L. Lindsey
A
Amadou Gaye
P
Pamela M. Martin *
DOI:10.1002/bies.70149delete
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Abstract

Abstract

En 中文
Student navigation through a PhD Program is marked by intellectual challenges, emotional fluctuations, and personal growth. Students develop excellence by absorbing and adjusting, recovering, and improving in response to challenges. The ability to bounce back is termed elasticity, an engineering principle where systems are designed to withstand stress, recover from disruptions, and maintain functionality. Students can proceed from elasticity (resilience) to then develop antifragility, the ability to become better from an experience. It occurred to the first author (a PhD graduate student in biomedical sciences) that developing antifragility is conceptually easier to understand by applying basic engineering concepts. We examine five thematic categories that connect engineering concepts with practical realities of graduate study: (1) load and stress management; (2) redundancy and backup systems; (3) setback modes and recovery; (4) adaptive capacity and flexibility; and (5) sustainability and long-term performance. By understanding how to gain antifragility, one can navigate demands more effectively.
Keywords:
career development
mentoring
research capacity
training

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BioEssays cover
BioEssays
IF:
2.7
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4.7K
Citations:
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M
Meharry Medical College
Scholars:
1.6K
Papers: 1.1K
Citations: 690
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